POLITICS CORNER

[Tripps]

Bear in mind that the job of the 'independent' Governor of the Bank of England is to keep inflation at a 'healthy' 2 %. Gordon Brown is throwing his weight around today, and has just reminded us all that he made the Bank 'independent' and set the target too I'd guess.

"He tackled the job that couldn't be done - and couldn't do it"

I'm sure he knew that when he took the job, but the fringe benefits are attractive.
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Later that same day . .

"Boris Johnson has ruled out new cost of living measures until a new prime minister is in place"

He has a 'wedding' party, and a holiday to recover from, and he''ll be busy with his 'lavender list' to reward his chums, and secure his financial future. He also is contracted to write a biography of that little known playwright one Wm Shakespeare so he really hasn't any spare time.

Demob happy - and two fingers to the nation. Contemptible. Winston Churchill he ain't.

[Stanley]

Couldn't agree more David.
I hear this morning that Liz Truss is saying we have a golden future. What is that woman on? Has she completely missed what is happening economically? Has she missed the fact that millions of people are dreading the future as they are up to their necks in debt already and can see no light at the end of the tunnel?
I begin to think she is more deluded than Johnson (and that's saying a lot!)

[plaques]

... and has just reminded us all that he (Brown) made the Bank 'independent' and set the target too I'd guess.

As far as I can remember most of the world's advanced countries were moving to a 2% inflation target in 1990 to 93. We joined the this target after a lot of others had declared their hand. Why 2%? First its a way of degrading government debt and at 2% its slow enough for people not to see its happening. Obviously like compound interest over the years it builds up but is presented as year on year where the cumulative cost is lost. Smoke and mirrors.

Penny Mordaunt's support for Liz Truss's 'No more hand outs' She thinks the explanation is that people would rather not pay tax than getting it back later in hand outs. The obvious flow is that those who pay little amounts of tax on small earning will not see much advantage in this arrangement while those at the top end of tax payments will be getting a big saving where by definition they don't need a hand out.

There appears to be a big danger in allowing Conservative MPs to start thinking.

PS is our defacto deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab still asleep in his deckchair? Our Cheshire cat Prime Minister Johnson says nothing can be done or agreed while the PM contest is in full swing. He is still PM and should be dragged shouting and screaming back to No10. What if the contest were to last 6 months or Russia lobbed a few bombs on Germany. Would it still be "Nowt to do with me". No wonder the hospitality industry is suffering with a bunch like this organising p-ss ups.

[Tripps]

Here are some hard facts about the Bank Rate over my financial lifetime. Historical interest rates

Interesting that the demon Thatcher raised rates to 17% in 1979 'to combat inflation' The current rate after the latest rise (to achieve the same thing) is 1.25%. Does anyone understand economics? I don't.

Did you know that if you divide 72 by the annual rate - that gives you the number of years for the debt to double / halve. Here's the maths of it all - Rule of 72 Should be taught in schools but I doubt it is. Thus at 2% it takes 36 years. Long enough for the 'long grass' effect.

Underlying this whole situation we have a public who assume we have some sort of divine right to a high standard of living. We keep hearing ' we are the fourth fifth sixth largest economy in the world, as if that entitles us to everything we want.

In the end it will be "events dear boy", and I don't think it will be fun.

[Tizer]

I see Dominic Raab has said that Truss's planned tax cutting budget would be electoral suicide for the Conservative Party. We've always been led to believe Raab is a bit dim-witted and naive but perhaps his naivety means he still believes in telling the truth, unlike many other of our politicians!
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`Police checks on Russian and Chinese nationals are AXED: Monitoring scheme for residents from 44 countries gets secretly ditched because it is 'no longer effective' as Home Office already has the data' Daily Mail

[Stanley]

"In the end it will be "events dear boy", and I don't think it will be fun."
I think you're right David. In another thread I ask what happens when the same economic market forces hit things like food and water. This is entirely possible, don't discount it.
My main beef at the moment is the fact that because of an arbitrary set of Tory Party rules about their leadership contest the country is left without an effective leader at a time when we are under the greatest economic and political threats of modern times. It's ludicrous that Sunak and Truss are conducting their public political debate in terms of what will be acceptable to the Tory Party membership and not the whole electorate. As with Brexit this is being seen as an internal party matter and not something of national consequence that demands all party debate. This is why I contend that our political system is broken and we urgently need a new model.

[plaques]

The fact that they threw out Johnson as party leader and left him in place as PM is said that it was something they never thought would happen. Surprise, surprise, if this is a measure of their forward thinking then Lord help us. How many more of these 'well that's a surprise' cock ups can the country stand. The Tory party is turning out to be Midas in reverse with everything the country was promised in 2019 is turning to compost. ( I had another word in mind but thought better of it, must maintain standards) This is not a slippery slope more of a free fall into oblivion. The 'events dear boy, events' are all around us with no way out until the next general election. Truss's mantra of 'cut taxes and smaller government' is pure Tory ideology based in the days of sailing ships and Walter Raleigh pirates but where today the pirates are the Billionaire conglomerates holding everyone to ransom.

Time to move on as they say.

[Tripps]

This is from The Guardian 2017 - speaking of events in 2015.

"Capping utility bills was a key policy in Labour’s 2015 general election manifesto, but was rubbished by David Cameron as evidence that Ed Miliband wanted to live in a “Marxist universe”.
But the work and pensions secretary, Damian Green, confirmed on Sunday that the Conservatives would allow the market regulator, Ofgem, to impose a price ceiling for customers on standard variable tariffs. He said the policy should save families about £100 a year. "

£100 a year saving you say - how did that go then?

[Tizer]

G7 nations are calling on Russia to "immediately hand back full control" of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to Ukraine because the actions of Russia's armed forces are significantly raising the risk of a nuclear accident or incident. The Russians are currently using it as a `nuclear shield' and have weapons and ammunition stored there. About 500 Russian soldiers are at the site.

Also, the BBC reports: There are indications the Kremlin is running out of troops for its war with Ukraine. Regional authorities in Russia are pursuing a campaign to recruit volunteer fighters, but it is not getting much traction, one report says. According to independent Russian website Media Zona, at least 25 Russian regions are now trying to form volunteer battalions. Local administrations are offering lavish payments for fighting in Ukraine, but some have found only a fraction of the fighting force they are trying to assemble, the report says.

Looking up Russia's population on the web I find it's only 146 million, little more than twice the UK population, and they are spread over a vast area, so it's not so surprising they're having difficulty recruiting.

[Stanley]

Peter, that figure surprised me but I consulted the CIA factbook (LINK) and you're right.....

[plaques]

These are certainly odd times. Cost of living crisis, Energy crisis, Cheap labour crisis, Climate crisis and now the possible end to cheap air flights. All these have one common factor in that the UK's economy is moving backwards. Some of it is down to own goals or blue on blue were the intent is to remove state government and replace it by market forces. Brexit is the best example where under the cover of popular xenophobia and taking back control (Sovereignty) has taken the UK to the bottom of the league tables on every measure that points to an increase in living standards. One thing that is not being addressed is why the world is suffering wave after wave of virus borne diseases that at a local level can cripple industry and bankrupt the NHS. The obvious cause is the rapid movement of people through air fights. Unfortunately as the covid epidemic showed there was no interest in limiting the flights into the UK to stem the tide of infection. The same will apply in future debates where profit comes before peoples health. The end to cheap air flights may just be the thin end of the wedge where non essential flights will be made prohibitively expensive that only the super rich can afford them.
Sad has it may be there appears to be no alternative.

[Stanley]

Is there any positive news at all out there? I can't remember a more gloomy outlook and that includes WW2!

[Stanley]

I'm listening to the latest dire figures for ambulance response times and the number of crimes not being investigated. No mention as yet of the causes.... If you fail to fund social care and allow bed blocking to tie up a reduced number of beds and under fund the ambulance service what else do you expect? The same general failings apply to the police, funding cuts and staff shortages. We are told that we don't need police on the streets...... and that funding cuts encourage efficiency.... Really.

[Tizer]

Is there any positive news at all out there? I can't remember a more gloomy outlook and that includes WW2!

At present, politics and society in Britain and other European countries seem to be following the American trajectory - ever more internal division, extremism and xenophobia. I see no sign of it ending - but if we are lucky I'll be proved wrong!

[Stanley]

Liz Truss massages her blue rinse Tories again, See THIS. Her Thatcher re-creation gains strength every day.
Have you noticed that neither of them has piled in full time on the plight of the poor. What will they have to say when the consequences of driving them into penury start to become obvious?
I've just remembered hearing a commentator say that the poor would be driven into absolute poverty by austerity when Cameron and Osborne adopted the policy. My God, was he right!

[plaques]

How much more proof does the man in the street want to prove that this Tory government doesn't care a jot about ordinary working people. The Prime Minister is still in charge of the government but hides behind some fictitious convention that he can't do anything while the new PM selection is going on. This is from a man who blatantly broke the law by partying during lockdown. What a load of codswallop, an instant convention that really has no known precedent. The Cabinet is technically still functioning with both Truss and Zahawi major players plus a few other nodding donkeys. Between them the could formulate an emergency plan which could start immediately however small that could help those on the bottom rung. Meanwhile the energy companies will be laughing all the way to the bank while those only just managing will be on their second bottle of antidepressant drugs hoping that the government will do something to help them. With a mantra of 'no more handouts and the energy companies closing ranks on anything that smells of socialism and philanthropy they can forget about any reduction in bills.

You've got what the majority of the country voted for. Let that be a lesson for next time.

[Stanley]

Ken, nobody is telling the truth about Brexit. N Ireland is still a timebomb but is being ignored....

[Stanley]

Looking at the political scene this morning I am struck by the same things we have been discussing on the site for weeks now, the fact that during the biggest political and economic crisis in most people's memory we have an absentee PM and a zombie parliament. Idiots like Shapps try to convince us that the government is working by threatening cyclists with a new crime of causing death by dangerous riding and threatening to bring in new legislation to curb the rail unions and stop strikes. All this while the NHS slides into disaster this winter, the poor are under more economic pressure than ever and law and order is breaking down because of underfunding causing cuts in investigations and prosecutions. I could go on but I think you get the picture.
This is a relatively wealthy democratic country and the Tories have had hold of the reins for over 12 years. How did we get here?

[plaques]

The latest government GDP figures show a quarterly drop to 0.1% the start of a downward recession trend. the up-beat talk is that it is only a slight drop the reality as the BofE has pointed out that its the start of a possible two year trend.

GDP Latest .jpg

.
The main thing now is not to do anything about it but to find someone to blame. So far its the usual suspects ...
The Labour Government.
Covid pandemic.
EU red tape.
The French.
The Russians.
Bank of England.
Immigrants.
Left wing media.
The latest being ..the drought.

Anything but.......

[Tizer]

It must be time for another outbreak of flying saucers!

[Tripps]

Bear in mind that August has traditionally been known in the press as the 'silly season'. It seems to last the whole year round now.

Not much heard of crop circles now or SETI the search for extra terrestrial intelligence. Might be good to start the search actually here on Earth. It'd be a hard task though.

[PanBiker]

I'm sure I saw on a news report on my phone yesterday that Trump is being prosecuted under U.S. Treason Laws. Apparently for retaining a whole raft of security documents that should have been surrendered when he lost the election. Of course his excuse will be that the election was fixed and so he is still Commander in Chief. I doubt if the court will see it that way. Does the U.S. still have the death penalty for treason?

[Tripps]

Who do you hate the most - Trump or Boris Johnson? I doubt any of it will directly affect me , so I take the selfish way out, and pay no heed to it all. Nothing will come of any of it - for either, I'd guess.

Sounds like you had a good holiday up in Yorkshire. Good - you brought back a few memories of me and my family doing something similar a long time ago -in Bridlington amd Scarborough.

[Stanley]

I think Ken is, as usual, spot on. David is also right I think when he says that nothing will come of any action against either Trump or Johnson. Private Eye has an analysis of sanctions against MPs for rule breaking and they note that ministers seem to be immune, none of them sanctioned.
See THIS Report that Welsh Secretary Sir Robert Buckland has become the first cabinet minister to publicly switch his support from Rishi Sunak to Liz Truss in the Tory leadership race. Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Sir Robert said Ms Truss was the "right person to take the country forward". The Welsh Secretary had previously backed former chancellor Mr Sunak, citing his experience and judgement.
Apart from the fact this signals to me that Truss has guaranteed him a Cabinet job this is yet one more example of Tories using the right wing press to make announcements by writing articles. Do they get paid as well?

[plaques]

The Tory's have been in government for 12 years that's almost half a generation in anybody's money. During their tenure they have had only one plan 'austerity along with running services down including the NHS. Liz Truss is promising more of the same with bells on. The right-wing media are struggling to defend this suicide programme so they are turning towards the old ruse of "They are all as bad as each other.'". No specific comparisons given just general innuendoes that Labour would do much worse. Typical head line attacks are...

Labour splitting into two factions. To balance the conservative ERG and the more normal MPs
Labour have no published plan. The Conservatives plan is 'lower taxes' but leave extortionate profits alone.
Labour's plan to be published this week. Already rubbished on the grounds its Marxist and would benefit working people.
Where is Keir Starmer? A comparison of PM Johnson going AWOL during a crisis.
What about Starmer's 'Beergate'. To move the attention away from Johnson's Partygate.

The whole intent is to paint a negative picture of Labour's previous performance while ignoring the hard evidence that would show the contrary.

Lies, damned les and the right-wing press.